GROUP ENVIRONMENT
POLICY.
The Commonwealth Bank Group (‘Group’) is dedicated to securing and enhancing the financial
wellbeing of people, businesses and communities. We know that our decisions can have direct and
indirect impacts on the environment. Our objective is to ensure that we meet our responsibility to
both safeguard the environment and support economic growth and development.
1. Managing climate change
1.1. W
e know that climate change will have serious
environmental, economic and social impacts.
1.2. T
here is clearly a need to minimise and mitigate the
impacts of climate change. International efforts to
limit global warming to two degrees Celsius above
preindustrial levels will require a transition from
traditional economic models, and the world’s current
energy mix, to low carbon and renewable alternatives.
1.3. A
s a financial institution, we play a role in supporting the
transition to a low carbon economy and will continue
to actively seek opportunities to lend to, invest in, and
support innovative technologies and businesses that
decrease dependence on fossil fuels and mitigate the
effects of climate change.
1.4. W
e will also continue to seek opportunities to assist
our customers to meet their own environmental goals
through the provision of appropriate financial products
and services.
2.Managing direct environmental impacts within
the Group
2.1. W
e are committed to assessing and reducing our direct
environmental impacts by implementing the following
practices:
• Monitoring and reducing energy use and
greenhouse gas emissions.
• Investing in cost effective, energy efficient
technologies.
• Monitoring and reducing water usage.
• Monitoring and minimising waste through recycling
and more efficient use of resources.
• Developing processes for assessing environmental
impacts in our supply chain.
• Following best practice environmental performance
guidelines for the design, development, build and
operation of premises the Group occupies.
• Building the capacity of staff to understand, assess
and manage environmental risks and opportunities.
• Consistently developing and setting targets for
our environmental objectives, and reporting our
performance against those targets over time.
• Ensuring compliance with environmental legislation
in all areas in which we operate.
3. Managing indirect environmental impacts
3.1. W
e are in a position to influence the companies we
lend to and invest in with regard to their impact on
the environment.
3.2. W
e apply a comprehensive Environmental, Social and
Governance (ESG) Risk Management Framework to
manage environmental risk across our lending portfolio.
To this end we:
• Do business in sectors and with organisations
that have well-established environmental
management practices.
• Consider environmental risks throughout our
loan origination, credit approval and annual
review processes.
• Apply the principles of our Group Risk Appetite
Statement throughout the credit review process.
• Apply our Group ESG Lending Commitments across
project finance and business lending.
• For loans above a materiality threshold, assess
clients’ ability to manage their own environmental
impacts and risks using our ESG risk assessment
tools and processes, and engage with clients to
assist them in managing and mitigating their impacts
and risks.
• Apply the Equator Principles III to all project
related financing.
• Identify and understand high-impact sectors and
apply additional levels of due diligence to sectors
and jurisdictions where environmental regulatory
frameworks are not fully evolved and/or not best
in class.
3.3. W
here consistent with our fiduciary obligations and in
accordance with our Wealth Management Responsible
Investing Framework and the commitments we
have made under the United Nations Principles for
Responsible Investment:
• We will integrate environmental considerations
into investment products and services we create
to help customers and clients meet their financial
goals; and,
• We will provide our customers and clients with
the transparency and tools they need to make
their own choices on environmental matters in
connection with our investment products
and services.
GROUP ENVIRONMENT
POLICY.
4. Stakeholder engagement and reporting
4.1. W
e will engage with our customers, the community
and other key stakeholders to promote a broader
understanding, and more effective management,
of environmental issues.
4.2. W
e commit to fully disclose our environmental performance
through regular public reporting on environmental indicators
and our management of material environmental risks and
opportunities. Our reporting covers:
• Our direct environmental impacts, such as
property emissions;
• The indirect impacts of our lending; and,
• Our obligations under relevant environmental legislation
and the Equator Principles III.
Implementation
This policy covers the operations of Commonwealth Bank
of Australia Group.
The governance for this policy is assigned as follows.
• The Board of Directors is responsible for overseeing
adherence to the policy.
• The Executive Committee is responsible for integrating the
policy into business and risk management processes in
each business unit and function, and for ensuring relevant
governance processes are embedded.
• Business and support units are responsible for the
implementation of the policy and for providing adequate
training, coaching and resources to ensure employees
implement and comply with it.
• Corporate Responsibility within Group Corporate Affairs is
responsible for:
-- influencing the successful implementation of the policy
through the provision of strategic advice to business and
support units;
-- responding to queries about the policy’s operation
and implementation;
-- updating the policy; and,
-- reporting to the Board and Executive Committee.
• Group Audit is responsible for providing assurance services
to evaluate adherence to the policy.
This policy will be reviewed annually.
2015
David Turner, Chairman